Label for Meditations on African Art: Light, Dec 17, 2006-Apr 1, 2007: "Only the highest-ranking followers of Shango, the Yoruba god of thunder and lightening, are entitled to wear a vest that embodies this god's qualities of power and control through its use of materials, color and design. Red symbolizes lightening, fire in the sky, and white (or blue), the cooling and purifying properties of rain. Beads reinforce Shango's divine status by radiating light, and the cowrie shells arranged in dots and dashes signify points of light and blessing. The boldly contrasting colors and vibrant design of this vest convey dramatically a Yoruba aesthetic of brilliance, vitality and action." Karen Milbourne. Text paired with "Three priests of Shango dance wearing elaborate skirts and vests beaded with cowrie shells. Òsun-Yorùbá, Nigeria. From Beads, Bodies and Soul by Henry John Drewal and John Mason,1970, p.60."